By The Numbers: John Prolly

March, 9 2013by Nuno Oliveira

Christopher Lee photo

We’ve written down 100 random questions and assorted topics, all of which are unbeknownst to our victims. We will be asking people to pick 20 random numbers from 1-100 and then supplying them with those questions/topics to answer. Who knows what might come up!?!?!

For the 2nd installment of “By The Numbers”, we’ve called on John Watson/Prolly who runs the website Prolly is Not Probably. Read on.

Best gift you have ever received?
This one’s tough, because I get a lot of promo items, related to the site, all of which are pretty rad. Well, some of which… In recent months, the best “gift” was my Argonaut road bike. 100% manufactured here in the States. I still paid for some of it but not retail, so that’s a pretty substantial gift.

What has been an “ahh-ha! ” moment in your life?
Like Nelson Muntz “ahh-ha!”? Not to be too cliché, but all the haters who constantly talk shit on me, while they’re sitting at their desks working and I’m out, traveling the world, riding bikes (still working).

What advice would you give to a younger you?
I wish I could read my answer to this in 10 years. I’d probably say something along the lines of “you can’t plan for anything, just move with what feels right and start to eat healthier now, so I don’t have such a hard time losing weight wen I’m 32!”

What are you most proud of?
My life here in Austin, my friends, my girlfriend and this world that I’m involved in.

What is something you thought was going to be easy but wasn’t?
A few friends and I tried to ride 300 miles from Pittsburgh to DC (which is totally doable) but then Sandy hit and it was a snowy shitshow. I cracked after 60 miles because all I had were “wind-proof” gloves and apparel. It sounds like a rookie move but when I packed for the trip, there was no Sandy (I was in NYC the week before) and none of the bike shops had received their heavy duty winter gear yet, so I was way under prepared.

Tell us something people don’t really know about you…
I’m a huge nature buff. I wanted to be a veterinarian before I decided to go to school for architecture. I also worked for about 8 years in NYC as an architect.

Who would play you in a movie?
That dude from Game of Thrones. You know, the one that looks like me?

What’s your favorite time-waster?
So I skimmed down this list when I got your email and saw this question. For some reason, I don’t really have “time wasters” but I spend a lot of time scanning and editing film. That or eBay.

What do you think is an important topic that doesn’t get enough attention?
One of the only ways to bring our economy out of the shitter is to support more domestically-produced products. So many companies are more interested in selling 30 of something shitty than 5 of something great.

If you happened to get into a fight, who is someone you would want in your corner?
I’ll avoid fighting at all costs and most of my friends are that way (peace, bro), but if it came down to it, I think this dude Congo in Long Beach. I heard he beat up Adam 22 last week?

Do you have a preferred method for preparing your coffee?
Pour over, or Aero Press.

What was the last thing you bought?
Film. 5 pro packs of 220 Porta 400.

What was the last purchase you made online?
Ha. Film. No one carries 220 film anymore!

Toilet paper. When the roll is getting low, are you guilty of using just enough not to replace it, or do you do the right thing?
Oh, I’m a southern gentlemen, I replace the roll and make sure we’ve got enough left in the closet.